New England Patriots - NESN.com
Drake Maye isn’t the only recent New England Patriots first-round quarterback balling out this season.
Mac Jones led the San Francisco 49ers to two straight wins before ceding the starting job back to a returning Brock Purdy. A toe injury sidelined Purdy again for a “Thursday Night Football” division clash with the Los Angeles Rams, and Jones delivered.
The 49ers remain undefeated behind Jones following a 26-23 overtime upset at SoFi Stadium. Jones enjoyed one of the best performances of his career with help from a former Patriots teammate.
Kendrick Bourne secured 10 of 11 targets for a career-high 142 yards. The wide receiver reached 100 receiving yards once in his four seasons with the Patriots.
Meanwhile, Jones exceeded 300 passing yards for the first time since Week 1 of the 2023 season and notched his highest single-game tally (342) since Thanksgiving of 2022.
Purdy wasn’t the only 49ers star sidelined on Thursday night. San Francisco also played without wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, tight end George Kittle and edge rusher Nick Bosa.
The Rams contained Christian McCaffrey to 57 rushing yards on 22 carries, but Jones connected with his running back on eight completions for 82 yards and a touchdown. Yet the 27-year-old had an especially strong rapport with Bourne, who New England released before starting the 2025 regular season.
San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan noted the strong pairing in his post-game press conference.
“Mac’s a good quarterback and KB’s a good receiver,” Shanahan said. “I know we call it chemistry when they connect, but they like each other. They played with each other in New England. It was impressive today.”
The Patriots will hope to follow San Francisco’s lead and upset a division rival in a primetime game when they play the Buffalo Bills this Sunday night.
